The Ideas That Formed the Constitution, Part 22: Public Education
Commentary
This is the last in the series on “The Ideas That Formed the Constitution.” It applies the series’ lessons to how we educate our young.
The U.S. Constitution is America’s highest secular law—“the supreme Law of the Land” (Article VI). It structures the central government, regulates American federalism, and protects individual rights. Its study should, therefore, be a component of the education of every American citizen.
Indeed, for exercising American citizenship, knowing the Constitution is actually more important than studying, say, subsequent U.S. history. And it’s far more significant than many of the other subjects that consume time in public school classrooms….